Category Archives: Vignette

In the news/Vignette: Let slip the dogs of war

Posted on March 13, 2013 by secondbysecond

Cry ‘Havoc’, and let slip the dogs of war—as Shakespeare’s Mark Anthony so famously said. Seventy-one years ago today, the United States Army did exactly that. On 13 March 1942, they began to train dogs for the War Dog Program, … Continue reading →

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Vignette: If Hitler had a Facebook page…

Posted on February 12, 2013 by secondbysecond

The American Civil War felt the impact of photography, and much of the Second World War was reported through motion pictures in the form of newsreels. For Vietnam, it was television. For modern day conflicts, it will likely be social media. … Continue reading →

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Vignette: Pearl Harbour Day

Posted on December 7, 2012 by secondbysecond

“A DATE WHICH WILL LIVE IN INFAMY.” Today, Friday 7 December 2012, is Pearl Harbour Day—time to remember those who died exactly seventy-one years ago, and to remember the dramatic event which brought the USA into World War II. “A … Continue reading →

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In the news/Vignette: Robot discovers the Lascaux Cave (1940)

Posted on October 31, 2012 by secondbysecond

According to Tom Kington, recently reporting from Rome for the British newspaper The Guardian (18 October 2012), two men noticed a wandering cat slip through a small opening in a cliff face close to their home in the ancient city. When … Continue reading →

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Vignette: Venus, Victory, and the Chateau de Valencay

Posted on September 30, 2012 by secondbysecond

A few years ago, my wife and I visited the Château de Valençay some kilometres south of France’s Loire Valley. We followed hordes of French school children bent on learning about their country’s history—or having a fun time, at least—and … Continue reading →

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Vignette: Lumberjills of WWII—The Women’s Timber Corps

Posted on September 23, 2012 by secondbysecond

‘Jack and Jill went up the hill…’  If this took place in Britain’s woodlands during WWII and if Jill was a Lumberjill, then she wouldn’t be in search of water but of trees to fell, load onto trucks, and drive … Continue reading →

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Vignette: The art of Jean-Pierre Gibrat—The Flight of the Raven

Posted on September 5, 2012 by secondbysecond

One day, if I write a spy story set in Nazi-occupied Paris, with a bright young heroine named… Maybe her name doesn’t matter, but I would definitely write a scene where she escapes over the rooftops exactly as Jean-Pierre Gibrat’s … Continue reading →

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Vignette: The art of Jean-Pierre Gibrat—The Reprieve

Posted on July 29, 2012 by secondbysecond

La bande dessinée—loosely translated as ‘comic strip’—is a veritable institution throughout French-speaking Europe. Everyone in France (and many in North America) are familiar with the illustrated tales of Asterix the Gaul. Belgian examples include Tintin, the boy detective, and the cowboy, … Continue reading →

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Vignette: Listen very carefully, I shall say this only once.

Posted on July 25, 2012 by secondbysecond

Who said that tragedy is later re-enacted as farce? Maybe Hegel said it. Or was it Marx? Either way, the TV comedy ’Allo ’Allo! fits this idea to a teacup, and is the kind of classic farce that only the … Continue reading →

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